A Capitol Morning
First things, first. Our step count from the previous day was only 18,878. Wow, I am humbled by all of the 20K plus guesses! But remember, the day before, when we went to the Udar-Hazy Air & Space Museum, we spent around 4 hours getting there by Metro and bus, so that really cut into our walking time.
This was our final day in DC. We had a 3:15 pm flight, so we had all morning to tour. We did not tour the US Capitol building on our previous visit to Washington, and with the boys interest in politics, this was an important destination for us. When I went to book this, there were lots of openings during the week. I chose the first tour of the day, at 8:50 am.
We split up to get breakfast- Mark took Nate to the food court, where he wanted to go the previous day. Ben and I went to a counter place that was in the block of our hotel. I can’t remember the name and I can’t find the receipt. They seemed to have a large menu for breakfast and lunch.
Sorry these menu board pictures are so blurry!
Although this looks really interesting, I don’t like my breakfast to be overly sweet:
I prefer savory, so I got this Mexican breakfast scramble.
It was really good!
When we finished, it was time to make our way to the Capitol building.
We walked…
To the Metro!
We still had balances on our Smart Cards, so we saved a few steps.
We walked to the front façade of the building, but we needed to find the Visitor’s Center where our tour would meet.
Across the street was the Supreme Court building
When we got to the Visitor’s Center, it was mass chaos. Nobody knew where we should be waiting in line. People compared the times of their tours, but didn’t know if we should be in line in order of tour time or when they arrived. Then a group all dressed in suits showed up and decided they should be in the front of all of us who were waiting because they had a “special” tour scheduled.
Finally, around 8:30 a couple of staffers came out, looked at the crowd and said.
“Hey, what happened to the sign?”
“The sign is gone again?”
And that pretty much right there could have been our lesson in US Civics.
But we were called into the visitor’s center, went through security, checked in at the desk. And waited for our tour time.
Each state is invited to donate two statues in either marble or bronze of prominent historic figures. Originally, all were housed in National Statuary Hall, but it got too crowded in there and the floor could not support the weight. Currently, some statues remain in the hall and others are dispersed throughout the Capitol building.
The boys waited on a bench while I walked around taking pictures.
When I returned to the bench I heard Nate say
“That looks like John McCain”
“That IS John McCain”
He was across the room and I tried to get a pictures, but this was the best I did at long range.
Shortly after that non-encounter, it was time to meet the guide for our tour.
We started out in a theater for a presentation about the building.
After the movie, we got into groups and received headsets so we could hear our guide.
Set upon the highest hill in Washington, construction on the Capitol started in 1793. In 1814, British troops set fire to the building using books from the Library of Congress for kindling. A timely rainstorm prevented the building from being destroyed. Construction of the dome did not stop during the Civil War- President Lincoln stressed the importance of continuing the work, saying, "If people see the Capitol going on, it is a sign we intend the Union shall go on."
The building is currently undergoing renovations- you could see the scaffolding in the exterior pictures I posted and in our first stop on the tour, the rotunda. The work is expected to be finished before the Presidential Inauguration in January.
The rotunda is home to some well-known artwork.
The ceiling of the dome hosts the fresco Apotheosis of George Washington. He is shown ascending to heaven attended by figures representing Liberty and Victory and the 13 original states along with War, Arts and Science, Marine Operations, Commerce, Mechanics, and Agriculture.
There are also 8 large paintings on the wall:
The Baptism of Pochahontas
Declaration of Independence
Discovery of the Mississippi by DeSoto
Embarkation of the Pilgrims
George Washington Resigning His Commission
Landing of Columbus
Surrender of General Burgoyne
Surrender of Lord Cornwallis
Unfortunately, due to the rehab work it was difficult to see them.
Had to get a picture of Nate's political hero!
We were told that two floors below the rotunda, in the basement, is a small chamber that was designed as George Washington’s final resting place.
Who is buried in Washington’s Tomb?
Nobody! The bodies of Washington and his wife Martha are at their Mount Vernon estate in nearby Virginia in accordance with his will.
Then we entered Statuary Hall. This room served as the US House of Representatives from 1807-1857. One of the features of the room is the acoustics. From certain spots, sound carries so you can hear someone speaking in a whisper across the room.
The guide in the red is whispering something and the group in the middle is listening.
Chariot Clock, depicting Clio the Greek Muse of History
We did not get to go into the House or Senate chambers during the tour. I’m not sure if the public is still able to go in at certain times or not. I know on a previous tour I did with Mark, we were able to see them. I may have taken a restricted photo in there, back in my rebel days.
The other thing we did in a past trip was eat in the Senate Dining room. It was a really cool experience- first, you had to go through the catacombs under the Capitol building to get to the restaurant. At the time, the prices in the dining room were reasonable. I remember overhearing a conversation between two men in suits “The indictment is coming down next week”
The Senate Dining Room is open only to those authorized by the Rules Committee, such as senators, their spouses, children and guests, staffers, Senate officers , foreign dignitaries and senators’ constituents with a letter from their senator. If there’s room, others who aren’t officially authorized can often gain admission “because we need the revenue,” according to the manager of the restaurant.
Once our tour was over, we had about an hour and a half to visit a museum before returning to our hotel, having lunch and getting to the airport.
Contest Question:
We visited a museum on the way back to our hotel. Which one? (15 points)
National Gallery of Art
US Boatanic Gardens
Air & Space Museum
US Holocaust Memorial Museum
Museum of Natural History (repeat visit?)
Museum of American History (repeat visit?)
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Freer Gallery of Art (closed for refurbishment until 2017)
Museum of the American Indian
Museum of Asian Art
Museum of African Art
Museum of African American History and Culture (opening TODAY, Sept 24, I believe)
okay I might have gotten the shirt AND the space craft)
Super sleuth mum wins the day 
Great deal- shame about the accent though. Love the quotations especially the one about light and love 
